Remember Migraine Boy? We Do!

If you’re into absurd humor, and don’t mind hipping your kids to it, it might behoove you to take a look at Migraine Boy by Greg Fiering. Making its debut in ’92, in Seattle alt mag Hype, Migraine Boy followed the titular character through his daily adventures in modern suburbia. His neighbor, a nameless but cheerful character affectionately known to fans as Aspirin Boy, is always trying to make Migraine Boy feel better, to no avail.

(Of note: Fiering’s Migraine Boy caught the attention of Michael Stipe, who hired him to design REM’s Monster album cover.)

I spent most of my childhood — and now spend my entire adult life — battling migraine headaches. I get them nearly daily. I have one right now, as a matter of fact. And I want to put a bullet through my skull. Though I discovered Migraine Boy in my college years, I could relate immediately to his dark attitude, caused no doubt by his recurring brain-aches.

These days, I sometimes find myself slipping into total dick mode when I have a migraine, and I remember my favorite comic book character. I wonder what I must’ve been like as a child, suffering unbearable agony often accompanied by vomiting and dizziness. As an adult, I can deal. I take my meds, I lay down when necessary, and I try … try not to be a dick to people.

Migraine Boy has none of those concerns. He’s just, well, himself. A kid trying to deal with the abstract pains of growing up coupled with the very real and constant pain of migraines. If you have a child who suffers migraines, hip him or her to this comic. It will be an immediate hit.

Migraine Boy eventually made it to the small screen, with a brief series on MTV.

But I’ll always love the comics, where my imagination could fill in the holes, creating the scenarios that led up to this six-panel moment. Migraine Boy, wherever you are, I miss you.